The man who in 2016 arrogantly declared “I alone can fix it” spent party of Friday evening sheltering in the White House bunker.
Trump is unique among presidents in his support for vigilantism (see Donald Trump is America’s First Vigilante President). Inciting others to violent, illegal action (or excusing that action among this supporters) is fundamental to Trump’s outlook.
He can incite. He cannot, however, quell – the last person to whom the aggrieved will listen is Donald Trump. These years have made America weaker, but they reveal also Trump’s weakness: insistence on his own ability and authority has not led to a triumph but instead to a trip to the bunker.
Jennifer Rubin, assessing Trump, observed that Trump is a dumb person’s idea of a smart person (“In many ways, President Trump behaves just how poor people imagine rich people do — with garish, ostentatious displays of wealth, imperiousness toward the common folk and disregard for the rules others must follow. He and his staff also act how dumb people imagine smart people behave. Trump talks in circles, repeating stock phrases so as to deflect any questions that might reveal his ignorance.”)
There are few dumb people, in fact, as most people are sharp. And yet, and yet, of those still believing that Trump, of all people, can fix what’s broken in America, well, that’s almost daring the application of the label.